The fleet's in! Maritime festival to dock at harbor

June 13, 1991|By Craig Timberg

The number of tall ships expected to arrive at Fells Point to kick off this weekend's maritime festival was incorrectly reported in The Sun yesterday. Thirteen tall ships are expected to take part in a parade of sail from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. today, passing Fort McHenry and approaching the Inner Harbor before docking at Fells Point about 7:15 p.m.

The Sun regrets the error.

A fleet of tall ships -- many over 100 feet long -- will blow into the harbor this weekend for the first Fells Point Maritime Festival.

Despite the nautical theme, an eclectic menu of events awaits the expected 100,000 visitors. For those who aren't impressed by mammoth sailing vessels or the variety of ethnic food and music -- or even the llamas imported from South America -- a phrenologist will be on hand to study the shape of your skull and figure out what's wrong with you.

FOR THE RECORD - CORRECTION

The ships are to arrive by 7 p.m. tomorrow, and festivities, centered around the 800 block of South Broadway, will continue from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday.

Organizers hope to re-create Fells Point's 18th century heyday as a bustling dock and trading center, and they have enlisted the help of at least 14 ships and a dizzying array of performers, including storytellers, minstrels and 174-year-old abolitionist Frederick Douglass.

There will also be something called "The Outrageous Bohemian Elixir of Life Medicine Show," described as "Humbuggery and Jugglery; a glorious combination with a museum of unnatural wonders."

A daily lineup of live music will feature groups ranging from the Peabody Ragtime Ensemble to Mambo Combo, along with a performance of "The Pirates of Penzance."

"It's a headliner. We're going to go big time with this," said JoAnn Joyner, coordinator of the festival. She stressed this will be a family event, with no alcohol.